Derby's Wind Turbines See The Development Of A World First In Radar Technology

Derby will soon benefit from the installation of the world’s first fully operational 3D holographic radar™ system, as a result of Severn Trent Water’s work with radar technology specialist, Aveillant, and East Midlands Airport, to get its wind turbines turning.

Severn Trent Water’s renewable energy manager, Martin Dent, explains: “This is an exciting time for us. Since we installed our wind turbines we’ve been working closely with Aveillant, and East Midlands Airport, collecting data and identifying the new radar technology to work with the turbines, which we’re proud to say is a global first.

“Because of their position in relation to the airport, the wind turbines had to be constructed and working to allow data to be gathered, this was then used to finalise the radar design and decide on its location. Now that this has been done, we’re installing the new radar on one of our sites so that it can observe the wind turbines from a distance, while enjoying unrestricted views of the skies above the wind turbines and the city of Derby. Preparations are now underway for the construction of the new radar equipment.

“We understand that it’s frustrating for local people to see the wind turbines at a standstill; however, a lot of groundbreaking work has been going on in the background to prepare for the new radar system to be installed. Our investment in this new technology is making sure that it will meet the airport’s needs and allow Winnie and Tony to operate without restriction for their long term future.”

Severn Trent Water has a further two wind turbines which are already generating power at Wanlip near Leicester and Newthorpe near Nottingham. During December, together they generated over 1,300 megawatt hours of electricity which is equivalent to powering more than 400 homes for an entire year, in just one month.